One of the first steps you take when you are making a decision about your gardening schedule is find your USDA Zone info. The most important data that the zone info tells us is average last frost and the lowest expected temperature for your area.

The best time to plant gladiolus in Winthrop Harbor can be figured out by reviewing the USDA zone info.

Planting Calendar for Gladiolus

Frost tolerance for gladiolus:	Tolerant of a very small amount of frost.
When to plant:	Up to 3 weeks before last frost.

Gladiolus are one of those plants that can tolerate a tiny bit of cold weather which means that you can start planting them slightly earlier than plants that are more sensitive to the cold.

The earliest that you can plant gladiolus in Winthrop Harbor is March. However, you really should wait until April if you don't want to take any chances.

The last month that you can plant gladiolus and expect a good harvest is probably August. You probably don't want to wait any later than that or else your gladiolus may not have a chance to grow to maturity. If you are starting your gladiolus indoors then you might be able to get away with starting them a couple of weeks earlier.

Last Frost Date

On average the last frost when the weather gets warmer is on April 15 in Winthrop Harbor. You should expect an average low temperature of -15°F in the coldest months of winter.

Just be sure to remember that USDA zone info for Winthrop Harbor may not be accurate from year to year and the actual date of last frost will vary from year to year. Half of the time in Winthrop Harbor it frosts late in the year after April 15 so just be sure to be ready to cover your gladiolus if you have one of those late frosts.

USDA Zone Info for Winthrop Harbor

Here is the info for USDA Zone 5b.

Average Date of Last Frost (spring)	April 15
Average Date of First Frost (fall)	October 15
Lowest Expected Low	-15°F
Highest Expected Low	-10°F

This means that on a really cold year, the coldest it will get is -15°F. On most years you should be prepared to experience lows near -10°F.

Plants to Grow in Winthrop Harbor

You may be interested in your other planting guides for Winthrop Harbor.